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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24242941">Late Night</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/asoulofstars/pseuds/asoulofstars'>asoulofstars</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Familiarity [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Mentalist</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Bonding, Friendship, Gen</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 20:22:23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>861</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24242941</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/asoulofstars/pseuds/asoulofstars</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Riona &amp; Jane talk over tea during a late night at CBI.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Angela Ruskin Jane/Patrick Jane, Patrick Jane &amp; Original Character(s), Patrick Jane &amp; Riona Gallagher</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Familiarity [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1749190</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Late Night</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Listen, I just need my Hufflepuff &amp; Slytherin ultimate friendship, so they get to bond. They have a gentle understanding of each other. Also, yes, my roommate pointed out that CBI doesn't have a morgue, but they /do/ have a forensics unit, so they get their own morgue hiding in their basement.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Riona wandered into the kitchen of CBI, blinking slowly as she adjusted to the dim lights; the morgue was always so bright. She looked over across the bullpen, seeing Agent Cho and Agent Rigsby on night shift, and—to her surprise—Patrick Jane curled up on the couch. She had gotten accustomed to seeing him on the couch rather than at the desk CBI had provided him on the occasions that she did get to come upstairs, but she was surprised to see him sleeping like that. As a consultant, he was not required to work night shifts, even if his team was, and he liked to make it clear that he was not beholden to the same rules as the actual agents. She looked through the beverage selection, and she realized that there was much more tea than there used to be.<br/>
She started looking through the selections, trying to find something with caffeine.<br/>
“If you want to sleep at all, maybe you should avoid caffeine.” Patrick’s voice made her jump. “See, you’re already jittery.”<br/>
“You were asleep,” she said. “And you startled me.”<br/>
“I was resting,” he replied with a slight tilt of his head. “And I apologize for startling you. Do you like tea?”<br/>
“I’m not necessarily good at tea. I heat up water, pour it in, and put some sugar in.” She shrugged; she'd never been particular enough to care about learning each and every different type of tea's instructions.<br/>
“Oh, let me teach you.” He plucked a cinnamon tea. “Flavor is important to you, and this’ll keep you sharp without the caffeine.”<br/>
“And why are my sleep habits so important to you?” she asked.<br/>
“Why are you here this late when there are no active homicides right now?” He eyed her up and down. “Something’s bothering you, and you’re working to keep yourself occupied.” He put the kettle onto the stove.<br/>
Riona crossed her arms over her chest. “I don’t really want to talk about it.” Which was just a confirmation of what he said, but she wasn't going to think about that right now. No, she would much rather not talk about anything that was going on in her head.<br/>
“It was merely an observation. You can say as little or as much as you like. For cinnamon tea, we will be waiting for the kettle to shriek.”<br/>
Riona sighed. She swore that this was a method to get her to talk, but she wasn’t sure about talking to him. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust him; it was that he made her feel like he was reading her. And she didn't want to talk about it, because if she started, she wouldn't stop, and she'd also cry.<br/>
“Ah!” Jane smiled as the kettle let out a whistle. “Now we put in a spoonful of sugar, pour the water over, and let the teabag sit.” He poured them each a mug. “You can add more sugar if you need once it’s steeped.”<br/>
“What do you want me to talk about?” she asked, exasperated by the silence.<br/>
He chuckled. “Interesting phrasing, Riona. What makes you think I want you to talk?” he asked.<br/>
“The tea, the fact that you know I’m upset, and psychic or not, you do know how to read people and can’t help yourself; you have to poke and prod.” Riona shrugged.<br/>
“There’s no such thing as psychics,” he replied. “Just observant people.” He handed her one of the cups. “You’re observant. You could do it if you tried.”<br/>
“Not with you,” she replied. “You’re far too guarded.”<br/>
He chuckled. “Come on, there has to be something you can pick up.” He took a sip of his tea.<br/>
Riona noticed his wedding ring. “You’re still married,” she said softly.<br/>
He gave her a very small, but genuine, smile. “Thank you for phrasing it like that. Most people wouldn’t mean anything by it, but they’d say something like you still think of yourself as married or you still consider yourself married. I am still married. Will she ever know any different? Of course not, but I can’t even pretend to move on as long as Red John’s out there.”<br/>
Riona nodded. “I don’t know if I believe in the afterlife. I was raised Catholic, but it didn’t stick. I do, however, believe in science. And science says that energy is neither created nor destroyed. So, your wife and daughter are out there somewhere still. Maybe as a sun ray that keeps you warm, or that perfectly timed breeze. Or some other little innocuous thing. Is it a sign? No. But that energy didn’t just disappear. It’s out there, affecting the world, and it will be for infinity, because it just keeps converting.”<br/>
“Thank you. I think that’s the first time someone’s ever genuinely comforted me with thinking about them after death.” He nudged her gently. “I told you that you could do it.”<br/>
Riona smiled back at him. “I should get back to work,” she said.<br/>
“You should get some sleep,” he replied.<br/>
“Thanks for the tea.” She took her cup and went back downstairs, feeling a little bit warmer even as she descended.</p>
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